Leadership qualities required from a current raf leader
I think we are about to offer Costa Rica a chance to join Canada, to guarantee the coffee supply, and a World Cup win in due course. That should just about sort it!
CG
Ah, dost thou mean this...
Canada-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement
Apparently we've had it in place since 2002 - I should have checked
Canada-Costa Rica Free Trade Agreement
Apparently we've had it in place since 2002 - I should have checked
Drifting slightly, I was once a party to a discussion on the leadership and management.
The question was posed: 'what is the difference between leadership and management'?
One answer offered was: 'leadership is management where your decision could get somebody killed'.
Regardless of one's view, it can often be quite difficult to define what we mean by the words 'leadership' and 'management'. I have never claimed to be good at either but I have tried to follow a simple suggestion given me at OCTU by a hairy ex-SNCO: 'treat everybody for whom you have a responsibility, with the same consideration as you would hope and expect to receive yourself'. Incidentally, he's the same chap who when I said: 'what should I aim to do on my station', retorted 'keep your f*^CK$+g mouth shut and just listen' - good advice I found!
Old Duffer
The question was posed: 'what is the difference between leadership and management'?
One answer offered was: 'leadership is management where your decision could get somebody killed'.
Regardless of one's view, it can often be quite difficult to define what we mean by the words 'leadership' and 'management'. I have never claimed to be good at either but I have tried to follow a simple suggestion given me at OCTU by a hairy ex-SNCO: 'treat everybody for whom you have a responsibility, with the same consideration as you would hope and expect to receive yourself'. Incidentally, he's the same chap who when I said: 'what should I aim to do on my station', retorted 'keep your f*^CK$+g mouth shut and just listen' - good advice I found!
Old Duffer
Remember an Army guy who was advised, on leaving Sandhurst, to walk in on his first day at the Regiment and say "What am I doing today, Staff Sergeant?"
Worked a treat. Have used the equivalent myself.
Was asked that as the first question recently at interview and answered "Leadership is deciding where you are going and getting everyone else to follow; Management is how you get there." Not original; Passed with flying colours.
Worked a treat. Have used the equivalent myself.
Was asked that as the first question recently at interview and answered "Leadership is deciding where you are going and getting everyone else to follow; Management is how you get there." Not original; Passed with flying colours.
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Slightly oblique but I'm reminded of the quote by the late great Sir Basil Embry. 'Senior officers should fly high performance aircraft because it's good for promotion and the survivors are worth having.'
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Saw this once, apologies for paraphrasing:
Noah saw that it was about to rain heavily, and said: "Let's build an Ark, and fill it with 2 animals of each species" - Management
Noah then said: "Don't let the Elephants see what the Rabbits are doing" - Leadership
Noah saw that it was about to rain heavily, and said: "Let's build an Ark, and fill it with 2 animals of each species" - Management
Noah then said: "Don't let the Elephants see what the Rabbits are doing" - Leadership
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Bridgets
Sorry, must be having an off day but I don't get this.
"Noah then said: "Don't let the Elephants see what the Rabbits are doing" - Leadership"
Sorry, must be having an off day but I don't get this.
"Noah then said: "Don't let the Elephants see what the Rabbits are doing" - Leadership"
With some very notable and excellent exceptions, leadership is a quality required of JNCOs, NCOs, junior and some senior officers. The same goes for officer qualities. Further on these requirements have been known to be replaced by "Just do what I want." Is that leadership?
As I said, with some notable exceptions.
As I said, with some notable exceptions.
Now we're drifting into types of leadership (and management).
Occasions dictate that a single style of both L & M will not suffice for every situation.
I teach air cadets leadership and I use the well tried SMEAC approach: Situation, Mission, Execution, Answer questions, Check understanding. I tell them that SMEAC is applicable to almost every task in some form or another and then try to build on this by providing increasingly complex tasks. This naturally leads into the business of Task, Group and Individual needs, replanning, coping with the unexpected, motivation etc.
It can be interesting to realise that the smart, alert cadet is not always the sharpest, best motivated and resilient when the going gets tough. As somebody once said to me: 'I do my airmens (and womens) assessments on Day Four of the TACEVAL'.
O-D
Occasions dictate that a single style of both L & M will not suffice for every situation.
I teach air cadets leadership and I use the well tried SMEAC approach: Situation, Mission, Execution, Answer questions, Check understanding. I tell them that SMEAC is applicable to almost every task in some form or another and then try to build on this by providing increasingly complex tasks. This naturally leads into the business of Task, Group and Individual needs, replanning, coping with the unexpected, motivation etc.
It can be interesting to realise that the smart, alert cadet is not always the sharpest, best motivated and resilient when the going gets tough. As somebody once said to me: 'I do my airmens (and womens) assessments on Day Four of the TACEVAL'.
O-D
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Leadership and Management
About the best definition of Leadership I have heard is:
"Inspiring people to achieve things that they didn't know they could do"
Management is providing the resources to support those goals (as others have said).
"Inspiring people to achieve things that they didn't know they could do"
Management is providing the resources to support those goals (as others have said).
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500. Do you want the 2 elephants on your ark to breed like the 2 rabbits on your ark tend to do?
Of all the leadership lectures they give at RMC one sentence has stuck with me in regards to being a 'leader worth following'.
"You are afforded a certain amount of respect due to the rank you have attained, the rest you have to earn."
It's why today's 'leaders' mostly fail..they've never earned the respect, they just demand it. Imo.
Of all the leadership lectures they give at RMC one sentence has stuck with me in regards to being a 'leader worth following'.
"You are afforded a certain amount of respect due to the rank you have attained, the rest you have to earn."
It's why today's 'leaders' mostly fail..they've never earned the respect, they just demand it. Imo.
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Heard this one a while ago.
Management is about doing things right.
Leadership is about doing the right thing.
Management is about doing things right.
Leadership is about doing the right thing.
I always think that management in the military gets a bad 'rep'. Everyone wants to call themselves leaders, no-one wants to call themselves managers.
Well, £40Bn of public cash does not need to be led, it needs to be managed. The challenge of maintaining airworthiness on aging fleets needs management, not leadership. The need to recruit or sack large numbers needs a managerial decision on how the manpower pipleine is functioning, it doesn't need a charasmatic leader who has no idea of what to do.
IMO, rolling goats such as axing of the Nimrod and Harrier fleets, the carrier and F35 variant debacles, CWS on FJs, and virtually every military cock-up identified by the NAO or the HCDSC over the past 20 years has been caused, not by a lack of leadership, but by a lack of management.
So, while leadership will always be essential when people are involved, here's a lonely 'Huzzah' for good MANAGEMENT!
Well, £40Bn of public cash does not need to be led, it needs to be managed. The challenge of maintaining airworthiness on aging fleets needs management, not leadership. The need to recruit or sack large numbers needs a managerial decision on how the manpower pipleine is functioning, it doesn't need a charasmatic leader who has no idea of what to do.
IMO, rolling goats such as axing of the Nimrod and Harrier fleets, the carrier and F35 variant debacles, CWS on FJs, and virtually every military cock-up identified by the NAO or the HCDSC over the past 20 years has been caused, not by a lack of leadership, but by a lack of management.
So, while leadership will always be essential when people are involved, here's a lonely 'Huzzah' for good MANAGEMENT!
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Leadership
To paraphrase Field Marshal Viscount Slim of Burma:
Leadership is the combination of obligation, persuasion and example that causes men to do what you want.
Not a bad starter for ten ....
Leadership is the combination of obligation, persuasion and example that causes men to do what you want.
Not a bad starter for ten ....
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Sorry 500N, blame it on the arrival of Sunday Times Wines quarterly submission...
Should have been the other way round, but at least you noticed! Management is shoving the animals on the ark, leadership is... oh whatever!!
We all know the difference, and we all know when we don't experience either of them enough.
Should have been the other way round, but at least you noticed! Management is shoving the animals on the ark, leadership is... oh whatever!!
We all know the difference, and we all know when we don't experience either of them enough.
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I'll throw this one in the mix and am interested in people's comments !
Making a decision, the opposite of which is "paralysis by analysis".
Of which IMHO, no one seems to be able to make a decision nowadays,
be it lack of ability or arse covering.
Good leaders seem to be able to sum up / collate a situation, the environment, situation, people and views
- yes, I believe even Military leaders should take the people and views into account - and make a good
decision pretty quickly.
Good managers ? Well, seems a lot can't make a decision because of the structure.
bridgets
"Sorry 500N, blame it on the arrival of Sunday Times Wines quarterly submission..."
Excellent reason 
Making a decision, the opposite of which is "paralysis by analysis".
Of which IMHO, no one seems to be able to make a decision nowadays,
be it lack of ability or arse covering.
Good leaders seem to be able to sum up / collate a situation, the environment, situation, people and views
- yes, I believe even Military leaders should take the people and views into account - and make a good
decision pretty quickly.
Good managers ? Well, seems a lot can't make a decision because of the structure.
bridgets
"Sorry 500N, blame it on the arrival of Sunday Times Wines quarterly submission..."
Excellent reason